Abstract

In the days of the Prophet, Ahlaf and Fudul were well known by a group of well-off merchants intended to protect the business monopoly and sustain virtues, protect the poor and needy. The principles of competition law are already in existence in Islam and most importantly it is also constitutive of the prohibition of monopolies. In a tradition reported in al-Muslim, where Prophet declared: "Nobody hoards except the wrongdoer". As narrated by Ibnu Majah, in his famous book of Hadith, where the Prophet claimed, “He also keeps back grain from sale for forty days only to sell it at higher prices, sale it that such a man is not aware of the existence of God or that God has cut himself off from him”. Sharia also promotes competition and price-fixing, monopolies were banned as early as the time of Prophet Muhammad. The absence of strong competition laws in the GCC countries indicates the personal benefit of the monarchies, due to which the economy of GCC countries is heavily dependent on the oil sector which impacts not only the GCC countries but also the globe. If IMF is to be believed the Gulf will see a turbulent phase about 2034 the global peak in oil demand will be reached, sooner than the expectations of these nations, emphasizing on the urgency of economic diversification. This paper aims at analyzing competition laws in the GCC and studying all such internal and external impacts and suggesting a way forward.

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